We do a lot of work in flood zones and from what I've heard regarding "stilts"(we call them pilings) is you're looking at 20-30k extra over a traditional slab with a crawl space....Most of our footings are within a couple feet of sea level so we've never needed pilings but if you're indeed that deep you defintiely can't pour a footing on top of muck.....The other concern is flood insurance - the lower your first floor elevation the higher the flood insurance - I'd imagine if your first floor is under 10' the insurance would be astronomical.....your best bet is to talk to an engineer, get a survey, and go from there.

During that time I'll get my RE licence and begin raising funds for fix and flips / buy and holds by building a strong traditional wholesaling and wholesaling lease options business.Any advice, referrals,....words of encouragement?...

Too many young people who want to get rich fast pick the wrong way of doing it.

Could you go traditional mortgage or hard money until you can sell the first place?

Don’t rely on just traditional bank routes for real estate financing either, because there are many options to consider.

Unfortunately traditional and Roth IRA contributions are only $5,500 per year so it would be difficult to do some serious investing with that amount.

While a primary isn't a great investment, it is still better than renting, and it gets you through the traditional buying process. 

It may not be what you deem a "great deal", but there areally a ton of places you could buy that would work fir house hacking that would never work for a traditional investor. 

A lil book I read 4 years ago that got a few people started in RE... maybe you heard of it Rich Dad Poor Dad?

I have been interested in REI ever since reading Rich Dad Poor Dad about 10 years ago, but have always been reluctant.